Glory of Sivar
Glory of Sivar is the 13th and final episode of the Wing Commander Academy TV series. Plot Act 1 On planet Dolos, Prince Thrakhath nar Kiranka and his sister, priestess Zukara nar Kiranka discuss about the upcoming Sivar-Eshrad ceremony, watching Dolosian slaves as they construct the pyramid. The Dolosians are unaware that they will be sacrificed to Sivar, being only told that they will be free. Zukara mentions the rumors that the warriors will pledge their allegiance to the Prince as Chosen Claw during the ceremony, thus dissolving their loyalty to their Clans. Asked whether she will oppose him, Zukara replies that he was chosen by Sivar, and anything standing in his way must be destroyed. In the Dolos system, a Broadsword bomber, piloted by Maverick, emerges from a jump node, pursued by a captured Sartha, piloted by Maniac. Three Dralthis take the bait and assist the Sartha, when both ships turn against them. The comes through the node, opens fire and launches three Scimitars. None of the Dralthis survive, and they destroy the jump buoy so that there will be no warning to the Kilrathi. In the briefing room, Geoffrey Tolwyn prepares a personal assault against Prince Thrakhath. A contigent of Confederation Marines will arrive to reinforce the Claw. Then, their fighters will make a diversionary attack on the Kilrathi fleet around Dolos. The Marines then will land to free the Dolosians. Two cadets in a captured Kilrathi fighter will land on the planet to establish contact with the natives. Maniac is shocked to hear that these will be Maverick and Grunt and not him but his coplaints are stopped by a stern Tolwyn. In his quarters, Maverick narrates the above in a recording to his father. He concludes that everything has confidence to Tolwyn's commanding abilities, but he wonders what kind of man he is, and he is not sure if they should follow him. The clock turns to 18:00 and Maverick leaves for the hangar. Maya McEaddens shows Maverick and Grunt the captured ship. It is under repairs as the electrical systems were damaged when it was captured. She considers Kilrathi technology less than adequate, the difference made by whoever pilots it. Maya bids Maverick farewell, clearly worried. He handles her a diskette with a message for his father in case he doesn't return; he prefers it to be delivered personally by her rather than with his personal effects. Boarding the Sartha, they arrange for a dinner in the mess hall once he gets back. Around Dolos is Agon Ra Sivar surrounded by a massive fleet. The Sartha is spotted and scanned and requested identification, and three Salthis move in to intercept. Maverick files it to the surface of the planet and is pursued in a canyon. One Dralthi hits the canyon walls but the Sartha is his on the engines, and goes down. Act 2 The Sartha is down, burning. It is spotted by a troop of Imperial Guards who shoot and destroy it. However Maverick and Grunt watch it from afar, armed with rifles. Tolwyn briefs the pilots of the Claw about a change in plans. The marines won't arrive, and the Claw will attack the Kilrathi alone, counting on the cadets' success to start an uprising among the Dolosians. Hoping that most of the fleet will be removed to stop the uprising, they will attack the Kilrathi Dreadnaught. The Dreadnaught's shields are 3 times stronger than a carrier's but Maniac exclaims "If the Kilrathi can find a way to build it, we can find a way to blow it up!". Tolwyn arranges him to lead the attack force, and dismisses the briefing. Archer, who was all the time thoughtful, approaches Tolwyn and asks him whether the Marines were even a part of the plan. The objective was not to save the Dolosians but to attack Thrakhath. Tolwyn explains her that they will be slaughtered whether they begin an uprising or not. Tolwyn had received orders from Admiral Summer (?) to eliminate the Prince, the manner was up to him; he was unable to send any reinforcements, and the Claw and everyone aboard would be expendable for that mission. Archer is angry to understand that Maverick and Grunt were set up and there was no contact for 72 hours. He ends the conversation saying that war is making hard choices. Maverick and Grunt are on a ledge spotting a Kilrathi base teeming with guards. At night they watch as Dolosian slaves gather in the barracks, and shoot the two Kilrathi guards. Assisted by Vidkun (?), the leader of the barracks, they pull them inside. They reveal to the slaves that they will be exterminated once they finish their labor, not liberated as promised. Maverick instigates them to rise against the Kilrathi until the Confederation arrives. Vidkun agrees to arrange a meeting with the rest of the Dolosian leaders. Indeed, sometime later he guides the two Terrans to the stone-cutting shed. However it was a trap, the entrance is blocked and the two are shot by Kilrathi. Grunt shoots a wall open and they run outside. However he is shot. Maverick attempts to help him up, but he is also shot, and Zukara arrives. She decides to make them the first victims of the sacrifice. Act 3 Maverick and Grunt are held in the brig of Agon Ra Sivar. Thrakhath tells Zukara that Vidkun revealed to him the imminent Confederation attack but they walk into a trap. The Delosians have been ordered away of the Pyramid of Sivar, the barracks were filled with warriors of the Imperial Guard. Vidkun is also in the cell, bows down and Thrakhath tells him that all Dolosians contacted by the Terrans will be held captive until the entire planet will be sacrificed. Thrakhath and his sister depart for the planet on a Kilrathi Shuttle. Thrakhath briefs the warriors when he receives a message from the flagship that Terran forces approach but he tells the officer that it is only a diversion and should hold back until the real attack begins. A Confederation fleet from the Claw arrives. Maniac orders Archer and Jazzman in their Broadswords straight into the Dreadnaught. The Dreadnaught engages the Terran fighters as Archer starts a torpedo run. Jazzman is hit but does not eject, thinking he can hold the ship, only to be destroyed moments later. Bitter about Tolwyn sacrificing pilots, she launches a pair of torpedoes; once is shot but others hit the target. The hit causes the brig force field to shut down and Maverick with Grunt escape. They are stopped by a strong Kilrathi guard, but the Dolosian Vidkun proves to be stronger and incapacitates him. Grunt arms himself with the Kilrathi rifle and the trio runs for a comlink to warn the marines about the ambush. The Dreadnaught's shields are still up. Maniac decides to perform a run to the hangar alone. He is joined by Archer, Payback and Hyena. He enter the hangar, and begins a shooting spree "for Jazzman". He emerges then out of the hangar. The Dreadnaught is in bad shape. The bridge officer asks Thrakhath to release fighters from the planet. He is attacked by the trio who enter the bridge. He attempts to draw his pistol, but is stopped by Vidkun. They are shot by an Imperial Guard, who is shot back by Grunt. They realised that the consoles are burnt. Grunt suggests to find an escape pod but Maverick suggests to find the helm. Guiding it towards the pyramid, they will stop the ambush. Then hastily, they board and operate the pod, which falls into the atmosphere. Prince Thrakhath is in a Sartha cockpit waiting for the assault force, when he is contacted by Garahl nar Hhallas from the Kilrathi Destroyer . He warns the Prince that a ship has broken and enters the atmosphere making a course correction. The Prince then sees his Dreadnaught falling from the sky towards the Pyramid. The Kilrathi fleet left Dolos dishonoured. Tolwyn commends the pilots for their self-sacrifice and willingness to give their life to save the Dolosians. He awards the Gold Wings of the Cadet Wing Commander to cadet Blair, for his bravery, initiative and ability. Blair however denies the award from him, used as bait on a suicide mission. He accuses Tolwyn for lying to them and risk the lives of a whole planet. He then throws it towards the magnetic seal saying that it is deserved by those who died. The medal is hurled through space, while the debris from the battle floats around the Claw. Trivia *This is the last episode of the series. The Series Bible indicated that later seasons would have had a Kilrathi pilot joining the crew, and incorporate elements from Wing Commander II and III, right up to the beginning of that game. *It is also a direct sequel of its precedent, Price of Victory. *Here Maniac finally displays his claimed skill of flying into an enemy ship's hangar and gut it from the inside. He mentions it (perhaps semi-jokingly) in Chain of Command. *Vidkun is obviously named after Vidkun Quisling, who betrayed Norway to Hitler during WW II. *This episode marks the death of Jazzman, who has appeared in the first episode, Red and Blue. It also marks the destruction of Agon Ra Sivar, and (apparent) death of Prince Thrakhath. As the Prince's death is not shown, his fate remains ambigous. He must have somehow escaped the destruction, as he is fully alive in the games. *The ambiguous character of Tolwyn and strained relationship with Blair is foreshadowed in this episode. However Blair and Archer who protest for his personal vendetta, don't know that Tolwyn had requested reinforcements for the operation, but was ordered to go alone by Summer. Tolwyn will later emerge as a tragic anti-hero in the games and novels. 13